The present invention relates to a system for controlling the flow of water in a fire hose and more particularly to a switch coupler to enable a hoseman to set and control the flow of water in his hose.
When a hoseman wished to have the flow in his hose changed, the hoseman would have to establish communication with the fireman positioned at the pumper. This communication has included voice commands, transmitter-receivers, gongs and telegraphic signals. None of these methods are completely satisfactory since, inter alia, they require a fireman at the pumper and introduction of human error or delay is not uncommon.
Commonly assigned, copending Nelson et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 550,044 filed contemporaneously herewith discloses an overall system for controlling the flow of water to fire hoses.
The present invention is directed to an electrical switch assembly which is used to generate signals for increasing and decreasing the flow of water to the fire hose. Briefly, it includes a housing which defines a flow channel and is coupled at one end to the hose and at the other end to the fire nozzle so that the switch assembly is manually accessible to the nozzleman. A longitudinally extending sleeve is rotatably mounted on the housing and carries a magnet, which when the sleeve is rotated, actuates a reed switch to provide a signal to a signal generator and transmitter circuitry within the coupler to provide a control signal for increasing and decreasing flow in the hose.